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Why Jesus probably hates religion

The best compliment Iâ€™ve received in a long time was â€śReally? Youâ€™re a pastor?â€ť It was on an airplane and it was from the man seated next to me. We had been talking for over an hour, mostly about the business trip he was on. When he finally asked me what I did for a living, and I told him I was a pastor, he responded with, â€śHuh. But you seem so down to earth and you havenâ€™t judged me.â€ť

I love airplanes. Thatâ€™s because I love meeting people and getting to know them. And when youâ€™re locked in an airplane for two hours, youâ€™ve got a captive audience right next to you. In the past, Iâ€™ve led with â€śHi, my nameâ€™s Alex and Iâ€™m a pastorâ€ť and let the conversation be defined by that. But recently, Iâ€™ve realized that may actually end up being a conversation stopper. So, I like to just get to know the person, find out what they do and what theyâ€™re interested in. Ninety-nine percent of the time the conversation comes around to God and religion without me ever revealing my occupation.

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The best way to stop a conversation short is by being judgmental and â€śreligious.
I think we as Christians have a reputation as conversation stoppers. When we engage people on the other side of an issue, most of the time, the conversation doesnâ€™t end the way we want it to. It gets stopped short or our side of the issue ends up being misrepresented. And thatâ€™s largely our fault. We prefer to be heard, as opposed to actually listening. We want the benefit of the doubt, but weâ€™re reluctant to give it. Instead, we lead with our idea of whatâ€™s right and wrong â€“ our belief â€“ instead of leading with love.

The best way to stop a conversation short is by being judgmental and â€śreligious.â€ť By that, I mean we come off as confrontational and condemning, rather than relational and loving.

Religion, for me, is a man-made path to God. Thatâ€™s how I define it in my new book. Itâ€™s a list of things we do or donâ€™t do that will either make God happy or make him mad. When we go down that dead end of religion, we usually end up judging others based on their behavior.

The name of my aforementioned book is "Jesus Hates Religion." With a title like that Iâ€™ve had to field quite a few questions. â€śCan Jesus really hate?â€ť â€śIsnâ€™t Jesus himself religious?â€ť â€śWhy would Jesus hate religion?â€ť I think the answer to nearly all of these questions goes to the core of who Jesus really is. Heâ€™s about love and relationship, not rules and religion.

Now, James 1:27 defends religion. It says that religious people will help those in need, especially orphans and widows. But itâ€™s very interesting that of the four times in the New Testament that the word â€śreligionâ€ť is used, this is the only time itâ€™s used in a positive way.

James is saying that religion can be good and helpful, but not always and certainly not usually. The whole idea of the book of James is that â€śfaith without works is dead.â€ť But heâ€™s not saying the opposite, that â€śworks without faith is alive.â€ť He says that he can show you his faith through his works, but faith has to be there first. Which is the same argument that Paul makes in Ephesians 2:8-9 -- that we donâ€™t and canâ€™t do anything to gain Godâ€™s love and grace. Itâ€™s a free gift!

Religion, the man-made path to God, says the opposite. Religion says that if I work hard enough and strive high enough, I can eventually get to God on my own merits. But thatâ€™s getting the whole thing backwards. Nothing we do â€“ our behavior, our beliefs, our best efforts â€“ will ever make us good enough to approach God. The only way that happens is through grace.

Dr. Alex Himaya is the author of "Jesus Hates Religion: Finding Grace in a Works Driven Culture" and founding and Senior Pastor of theCHURCH at BattleCreek, located in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It is one of the fastest growing churches in America, having grown from 120 to over 5,500 in just eight years. Himaya received his bachelor's degree from Ouachita Baptist University in Arkansas and his Masters degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, TX. He finished his Doctorate in Church Growth and Evangelism in May 2002.

Jesus came to break the veil which Judaism had set up dividing people from G-d. While he did adhere to some of the rules he also broke many others. Why? Because he knew those were the rules ultimately keeping people away from him.

Quoting snookyfritz:

Don't agree. Jesus was a Jew and as a Jew he followed all the God given tenents of his religion.

And while God's love and grace is a gift, we always have the option of giving that gift back through our actions

Jesus broke down the wall that kept the every day people from partaking. He set up a new set of commandments...the Beatitudes.

Quoting Bird_on_a_wire: Jesus came to break the veil which Judaism had set up dividing people from G-d. While he did adhere to some of the rules he also broke many others. Why? Because he knew those were the rules ultimately keeping people away from him.

Quoting snookyfritz:

Don't agree. Jesus was a Jew and as a Jew he followed all the God given tenents of his religion.

And while God's love and grace is a gift, we always have the option of giving that gift back through our actions

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